By April 25, gold prices had skyrocketed to US$3,500.16 per ounce, up more than 25 percent since the beginning of the year. The price hike reveals an extraordinary fervor for the metal rarely seen since the collapse of the Bretton Woods System in the 1970s. Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict started in 2022, central banks around the world, particularly those in emerging markets, have purchased on average 1,000 tons of gold each year. This combined demand accounts for 25 percent of the gold in the global market. In contrast to the clamor for gold, the market for US dollars has been affected by the US’s tariff policies, which are undermining its role as the global reserve currency. By April 4, Japanese investors, the largest foreign holder of US government debt, sold US$17.5 billion in US treasuries in a week. Experts have cautioned that without prudent trade policies, confidence in US dollars will continue to decline.
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